Achelous

Family: gods · Role: river god · First appears: Apollodorus, Library 1.3

🌐 Also appears in: The Metamorphoses of Ovid (as Acheloüs) · Greek Tragedy — The Same Myth, Three Voices (as Achelous)

Achelous is a river god associated with Tethys and Ocean as a parent. He had the Sirens with Melpomene, while Sterope is also said to have been their mother; the named Sirens are Pisinoe, Aglaope, and Thelxiepia. He was also the father of Hippodamas, Orestes, and Callirrhoe through Perimede.

Achelous courted Deianira, but Heracles wrestled him for her hand. Later, Alcmaeon came to his springs and was purified by him, then married his daughter Callirrhoe and settled on land “which the Achelous had formed by its silt.”

Relationship record

Life events

• Achelous purifies Alcmaeon, who marries Callirrhoe and settles on newly formed land.(Apollodorus, Library 3.7 · 📍 Achelous)
  • With: Alcmaeon Callirrhoe
  • “finally he went to the springs of Achelous, and was purified by him, and received Callirrhoe, his daughter, to wife. Moreover he colonized the land which the Achelous had formed by its silt, and he took up his abode there.”

Apollodorus, Library 1.3

• child: sirens “and Melpomene had by Achelous the Sirens, of whom we shall speak in treating of Ulysses.”

Apollodorus, Library 1.7

• child: Hippodamas “Perimede had Hippodamas and Orestes by Achelous”
• child: Orestes “Perimede had Hippodamas and Orestes by Achelous”
• child: Sterope “who is said to have been the mother of the Sirens by Achelous”
• with Sterope (The named relation is between Achelous and Sterope; the children are unnamed collective figures.) “Sterope, who is said to have been the mother of the Sirens by Achelous”

Apollodorus, Library 1.8

• courtship with Deianira “Hercules wrestled for her hand with Achelous”

Apollodorus, Library 2.7

• rivals with Heracles “He wrestled for her hand with Achelous”

Apollodorus, Library 3.7

• child: Callirrhoe “he went to the springs of Achelous, and was purified by him, and received Callirrhoe, his daughter, to wife”
• with Alcmaeon (Achelous purified Alcmaeon.) “finally he went to the springs of Achelous, and was purified by him”

Hesiod, Theogony 295-404

• parent: Tethys “the silver eddies of Achelous, Nessus, and Rhodius, Haliacmon, and Heptaporus”
• parent: Ocean “the silver eddies of Achelous, Nessus, and Rhodius, Haliacmon, and Heptaporus”

Apollodorus, Epitome 7

• child: Pisinoe (parent->child) “the Sirens were Pisinoe, Aglaope, and Thelxiepia, daughters of Achelous and Melpomene”
• child: Aglaope (parent->child) “the Sirens were Pisinoe, Aglaope, and Thelxiepia, daughters of Achelous and Melpomene”
• child: Thelxiepia (parent->child) “the Sirens were Pisinoe, Aglaope, and Thelxiepia, daughters of Achelous and Melpomene”

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Extracted from the original text of Greek Mythology. Made with Rho MD.